If Sin Separates From God, Why Cannot A Christian Lose Salvation?

Romans 8:35-39, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Once saved, always saved (OSAS) is 100% biblical. Eternal life and Eternal Security are NOT two separate doctrines in the Bible. They are one and the same. The Bible teaches that Jesus is eternal life. 1st John 5:20, “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” If you have the Spirit of Christ in you, you have eternal life (Romans 8:9).

Jesus Christ died on a cross 2,000 years ago to pay everyone's debt of sin (1st John 2:2; Romans 5:6-9; John 3:16). We as sinners contribute nothing to our own salvation except the sin that made it necessary. Salvation is of the LORD (Jonah 2:9).

It is biblically true that sin separates the sinner from God (Isaiah 59:2), which is exactly why Jesus died on a cross 2,000 years ago to bring peace between God and man (1st Timothy 2:5), to those who trust Him (1st Corinthians 1:21). Romans 5:1-2, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” Once a sinner comes to God by faith, accepting Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as full payment for his or her sins, believing that Christ was buried but is risen from the dead, God the Father declares that individual 'JUSTIFIED' (just if I'd never sinned).

Once saved, a believer's POSITION is eternally settled in Heaven. They are sealed with the indwelling Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:15; Romans 8:9; 1st John 3:24). Once saved, always saved. We can know this because eternal life is the free gift of God, which has nothing to do with our performance.

Salvation is not a reward for the righteous, it is a gift for the guilty.

Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith.

Turning away from sinful ways would be a work. Faith puts all of the merit where it belongs, on the object of our faith, Jesus and His work.

If to “repent” means to forsake our sinful ways TO BE SAVED, but Jesus already paid for our sins by dying on the cross, then what are we repenting from?

The true Gospel always points you to CHRIST; a false gospel always points to YOU.

The damnable heresy of misunderstood repentance has sadly crept into nearly every Baptist church today. Biblically, you don't have to repent of your sins to be saved. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do. A born again Christian should repent (change their mind) about their sins. But regarding the new birth (regeneration), faith is the only righteous thing that I can do (Galatians 3:26).

Pilgrim's Progress author John Bunyan (1628-1688) said it best, I humbly think...

“If you do not put a difference between justification wrought by the man Christ without and sanctification wrought by the Spirit of Christ within, you are not able to divide the Word aright; but contrariwise, you corrupt the Word of God, and cast stumbling blocks before the people.” —John Bunyan

In other words, we must always keep service (discipleship) separate from salvation (sonship), lest we pervert God's simple plan of salvation. Since unbelief is the only sin that can keep us out of Heaven, then unbelief is the only sin from which we must turn to be saved.

If sin were to separate the redeemed Christian from God, resulting in loss of salvation, then no one would be saved. Remember, we are saved by God's grace, not our works. Romans 6:1-2, “God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” I love this Scripture passage. When we sin as believers (and we all continually do), God's grace reaches lower than our sins so that we can never risk losing God's free gift of eternal life, which is by faith alone. Philippians 3:9, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.”

As humans we all have have a free will. When a Christian sins we have broken fellowship with God (1st John 1:6-9), and in this respect we are separated from God. But nothing could ever separate the worst sinful Christian from the saving grace of the Gospel that redeemed them. Our walk with God as saints is our CONDITION in Christ; our salvation is our POSITION in Christ. These are not the same thing.

Dear reader, I encourage you to read chapter 4 from Pastor Jack Hyles' (1926-2001) helpful book titled, 'Enemies Of Soul-Winning.' The chapter is called, 'Misunderstood Repentance: An Enemy Of Soul-Winning.'

According to Romans 5:15-18, Romans 6:23 and Ephesians 2:8-9, eternal life is the free gift of God, obtained without works. The spiritual new birth is as irreversible as the first physical birth. Getting saved is not a process, it is a supernatural miracle of God in response to a man's faith in the only begotten Son of God.

Pastor M.R. DeHaan (1891-1965) said it very well...

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —Pastor M.R. DeHaan, “Hebrews”; Zondervan Publishing House; 1959 (p. 117)

The Big Lie

Acts 13:39, “And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.”

I found the following helpful information at the GraceAnswers.info website...

“Free Grace Gives People a Free Ticket to Sin”

Expose the Lie. Reveal What They Refuse to Say.

There is a charge constantly leveled against Free Grace theology:

“If salvation is free and eternally secure, then people are free to live however they want.”

• That statement sounds forceful.
• It sounds moral.
• It sounds protective of holiness.
• But it is not honest.

Because it deliberately ignores the other half of the biblical argument.

The Lie Is Not What They Say — It’s What They Omit

• They talk endlessly about salvation.
• They warn loudly about assurance.
• They threaten constantly with loss.
• But they say almost nothing about divine discipline.

That omission is not accidental. It is essential to keeping the accusation alive.

Remove discipline from the conversation, and grace looks reckless.
Restore discipline, and the accusation collapses.

This Is a Category Error, Not a Moral Concern

The argument assumes something Scripture never teaches:

“If salvation cannot be lost, then consequences disappear.”
That is not biblical logic.
That is philosophical fear.

Scripture never ties daily behavior to eternal destiny.

It ties behavior to fellowship, discipline, and reward.

Eternal life is a gift.

Accountability is ongoing.

Those are not competing truths.
They are complementary ones.

What Free Grace Actually Teaches

• Free Grace does not say sin is harmless.
• Free Grace does not say obedience is optional.
• Free Grace does not say God looks the other way.

Free Grace says something far more sobering:

• You cannot undo regeneration. But you can invite divine discipline.
• You can lose intimacy with God.
• You can suffer real consequences in this life.
• You can forfeit eternal rewards.

That is not leniency. That is seriousness without fear-mongering.

Divine Discipline Is the Missing Doctrine

God disciplines believers precisely because they are secure.
Discipline is not the threat of rejection.
Discipline is the proof of sonship.

A judge punishes criminals.
A Father disciplines children.

If God never disciplined His people, grace would be suspect.
But Scripture says He does — firmly, personally, and lovingly.
Grace does not remove God’s hand.

Grace explains why that hand belongs to a Father, not an executioner.

The Irony They Never Address
If fear of Hell were the only thing restraining sin, then assurance would be morally dangerous.

Yet, Scripture does not motivate holiness with terror of damnation.

It motivates holiness with:

• love
• identity
• accountability
• discipline
• future evaluation

Fear-based systems produce outward conformity and inward anxiety.

Grace-based systems produce responsibility grounded in security.

The Real Issue Is Control, Not Holiness

Threat-based religion needs uncertainty to function. Grace removes leverage.

When eternal life is settled, teaching must appeal to truth, growth, and responsibility — not fear. That makes grace dangerous to systems built on intimidation. So they call it license.

The Mic Drop

Free Grace does not teach: “Sin freely.”

Free Grace teaches:

“You are eternally secure —and therefore fully accountable to a holy Father who disciplines His children.”
The Big Lie is not grace.
The Big Lie is pretending discipline doesn’t exist.

SOURCE: GraceAnswers.Info

A Christian's Sins Can Never Jeopardize Eternal Security

Ephesians 1:12-14, “That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

Many foolish pastors, missionaries, religious authors and evangelists today associate living a changed life with the new birth, which is the heresy of 'Lordship Salvation.'

Most of them fail to make any distinction between someone who is saved or unsaved when they speak of living a changed life, but it doesn't matter even if they did because one's behavior has absolutely NOTHING to do with getting saved by faith in Christ alone.

Eternal life is a gift for the guilty, not a reward for the righteous. They need to get their Bible facts straight!

Many believers live horrible lives of open sin. The Bible is full of such sinful saints. That doesn't mean it is okay to live in disobedience to God, but we all do just that at time.

The truth is that no one is any less sinful or more righteous in God's sight than the next Christian. You're either saved or lost, period. If you are saved, then the ONLY righteousness you have is God's imputed righteousness. What saith the Scripture? Philippians 3:9, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” That is one of my favorite passages of Scripture. I love the great Bible doctrine of imputation, which beautiful word (and consequently doctrine) has been completely obliterated from the Devil's modern Bible versions.

Case in point is the toxic 'Amplified Version' which was published in 1965. Evangelist Ray Comfort based his popular 2001 'The Evidence Bible' on the Amplified Bible. Consequently, Ray fails to make mention even once in 1,984 pages of the great doctrine of IMPUTATION. Dear reader, Ray Comfort is an incompetent Bible teacher!!! I say that kindly but truthfully. No theologian or preacher is competent who totally ignores the vital doctrine of the imputed righteousness of God through faith alone, by grace alone, in Christ alone. Put another way, we are saved by HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS. That is what Jesus meant in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” To go to Heaven someday, you need GOD'S IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS.

1st Timothy 5:24-25, “Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after. Likewise also the good works of some are manifest beforehand; and they that are otherwise cannot be hid.”

I love this tremendous passage of inspired Scripture. Some Christians do live above reproach, but there is no such thing as a Christian who can live above sinning. We are all guilty sinners in God's sight, even the best saints among us! As redeemed sinners we are still human. We still go by what we see, as the Bible concedes in 1st Samuel 16:7b, “for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” So, we naturally form our opinion of others based upon their outward behavior and words.

And although some Christians have very lovely testimonies honoring to God, yet the Bible says those individuals still have Skeleton Closets full of sins, failures and misdeeds (we just don't see them). That is what the Bible means in 1st Timothy 5:24. No child of God can boast of our own turning from sin, serving Christ or walking faithfully in holiness because salvation is “Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:9).

There are a great deal many false prophets today lurking in the churches, mission field, Bible colleges and social media who ascribe to the unbiblical idea that to get to Heaven your faith must produce works, which is the heresy of 'Lordship Salvation.' I like how Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold defines Lordship Salvation in the following quotes...

“Lordship Salvation is the unsupportable and unbiblical belief that the performance of good works, the promise of good works, or the evidence of good works, must accompany faith in Christ to establish or provide evidence that such faith has resulted in eternal life.” —Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold, 'Jesus Versus John MacArthur'

“Salvation is one thing and service is another, and never the two goes together. No man is saved because he serves, and no man has to serve because he is saved. Gotta keep them separate. And if you don't do it, the Scriptures will be confusing to you. You'll not rightly divide what God has to say.” —Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold, "Why Lordship Salvation Is Wrong"

In the belly of the whale, Jonah pondered the great biblical truth that, “Salvation is of the LORD” (Jonah 2:9). And it sure is dear friend! If you ever enter through Heaven's pearly gates some glorious in the future, it will only be because you appropriated Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as full payment for your sins. JESUS PAID IT ALL!!!

To be born again my friend, you simply need to by faith (taking God at His recorded Word in the inspired Scripture) receive Christ's sacrifice on the cross as full payment for your sins, believing that He was buried, but then three days later physically resurrected from the dead. This is 'THE GOSPEL' (1st Corinthians 15;1-6) by which all who BELIEVE IT are saved instantly, irrevocably and permanently (Romans 1:16). You have God's Word on it (Titus 1:2).

The only righteousness that I have is God's imputed righteousness, which is by faith in Jesus alone. Literally, the moment I trusted Christ as a 12 year old boy man in the summer of 1979, Jesus took my sins upon Himself and transferred His righteousness to me by faith. 2nd Corinthians 5:21, “For he [God the Father] hath made him [God the Son] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him [God the Son].” Dear reader, if you ever make it to Heaven someday, it will be solely upon the merit of the only begotten Son of God, and not because you tried to turn away from your sinning.

Just because I may sin more or less than you doesn't jeopardize my eternal security one iota. Biblically, I can live like the Devil and still have 100% assurance that I am going to Heaven. The reason why is because I wasn't saved by good works in 1979, I was saved by receiving Christ's sacrifice on Calvary's cross as full payment for my sins, trusting that He is risen. 1st Thessalonians 4:14, “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” I love that Bible verse!

By God's grace, I've been saved for 46 years and contrary to today's deadly neo-evangelical false prophets, I do know my facts as a fundamentalist Bible-believing preacher. Those reckless but sincere preachers are unfortunately caught between grace and works (a helpful sermon by Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold). Sadly, neo-evangelicals with their Lordship Perversion won't be going to Heaven (Galatians 1:6-9; Matthew 7:13-14; Luke 13:23-24).).

Doubt May Always Be There; Simply Believe The Gospel

1st Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

I once heard Pastor Jack Hyles in sermon say that he asked Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) if he ever doubted his salvation, and he affirmed that indeed he had at times. Dr. Hyles said that every Christian at some time in his or her life DOUBTS God's free gift of salvation. As our text passage of Scripture confirms, we ALL share the same temptations.

What saith the Scripture elsewhere? 1st Peter 5:7-9, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. Regardless of who you are dear reader, if you are a born again child of God, we all share in the same temptations, afflictions and burdens of life.

When I got saved at age 13 forty-five years ago in 1980, I doubted my salvation for the next several years. The primary reason was because preachers had horribly (but sincerely) misled me to think that prayer is required to be saved. Since I couldn't remember years later what I had prayed, I was stuck in a dire situation of fear, worry and doubt if I was really saved. I often cried in tears, scared of going to Hell forever.

So at age 17, I finally mustered up the courage to go talk with my Baptist pastor. Surely he would be able to help me, so I thought. Sadly, to my dismay he figured that since I didn't know that I was saved, I must not be. Then he did the worst thing he possibly could have done—he led me to pray another Sinner's Prayer. Arrggh! Unfortunately, even though he told the church the following Sunday that I had been saved, and then I was baptized in the baptistry soon thereafter, I still feared going to Hell and was no better off than before going to my pastor.

I eventually just decided to trust God's Word in spite of my doubts, and not worry about it. If I went to Hell someday it would be all Jesus' fault, because I am trusting Him 100% and nothing else. It wouldn't be until about 2005 when I read a very helpful book by Pastor Max D. Younce (1935-2023) titled, 'Salvation And The Public Invitation' that I finally obtained the PERFECT PEACE about my salvation that I had so desperately wanted since 1980. It took 25 years for me to find perfect peace that I was securely saved and on my way to Heaven. Since that time at age 38, I have never doubted my salvation one time. I am now 58 years old. I finally understood God's simple plan of salvation clearly. And it is God's salvation, not mine. I am simply the blessed recipient.

For those of you who still doubt, I'd like to share a helpful quote from Pastor Jesse Martinez...

“Regardless of what the voice in your head says, or what anybody else may say, God, says here that if you have believed you are now a child of God. You are not born of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man; you are born of God. This is important to understand. This is how we answer our doubts. And this is a practice that's not happening very often in Christianity, because it's not being taught. What 'practice' am I addressing here? The practice of relying on the Word for the answers to doubt. The doubt will always be there. The doubt will always try and dissuade you from the truth. But you have to recognize the doubt for what it is—it's a LIE! And that's the temptation of everything. There's a temptation to believe the lie. What's the lie in your situation?—that you haven't believed. If you've put your trust in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the payment of your sin, the Bible says you're saved.” —Pastor Jesse Martinez, YouTube: “Is BELIEVING in Jesus' Death, Burial and Resurrection ENOUGH to be saved?”

I have received thousands of emails over the past 23 years from people concerning their salvation. By God's grace I was able to help most of them, because they had simply never heard a clear presentation of God's simple plan of salvation.

But there are a small handful of people who struggle with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). It doesn't matter what truths I share with them, they just won't stop worrying. In my case, I was simply ignorant of exactly what God desired of me to get to Heaven. The non-essential 'Sinner's Prayer,' which preachers had deeply engrained into my impressionable mind as a youth, had utterly confused and misled me. It took 25 years for the damage to be undone which was caused by the Sinner's Prayer method to be saved.

Now, to clarify, most people naturally feel compelled to accompany their faith by praying, and that is okay. It is perfectly okay to call upon the Lord to ask Him to save you. That being said, and please don't miss this—it is NOT mandatory to call, ask or pray to be saved. You could simply BELIEVE the Gospel and be saved without ever calling out to God in a prayer. John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”

And please remember dear reader, Romans 10:13 is NOT a part of the Gospel. Calling upon the name of the Lord is optional. If you read Romans chapter 10, the Scripture plainly teaches that you must first BELIEVE (Romans 10:14), before you CALL (Romans 10:13). The Gospel of John is very clear that we are saved by BELIEVING (John 20:31). Prayer is NOT necessary to be saved, and it is wickedness for anyone to teach otherwise!

Dear reader, you can 'KNOW' that you are saved (1st John 5:13). In my humble opinion, the key verse in the Epistle of 1st John is 1st John 3:24, “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.” If you have God's Holy Spirit living inside your spirit, soul and body, you know it! The epistle of 1st John teaches that if you hate your Christian brother, or can sin without any conviction at all from God's Holy Spirit, then you might not be saved. That is, you might not have the Holy Spirit indwelling you. God is not an absent parent, so He will scourge and chastise us when we sin (Hebrews 11:6-8).

Learning that I could be saved in a church pew without walking down an aisle, or praying some stupid Sinner's Prayer, finally freed my soul from any doubts about God's free gift of eternal life. I was saved in a church pew. To be saved and have everlasting life, you simply need to BELIEVE that Jesus did it all for you. What does that look like? Jesus died on a cross to pay our debt of sin. He was buried, but then miraculously resurrected from the dead three days later. This is 'The Gospel' (Good News), by which any sinner who BELIEVES IT is saved. Salvation cost Jesus the blood that He shed and His life. It costs us nothing!

Whatever doubts you may feel friend, just make sure that you're not trusting in anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ, who is the only begotten (biological) Son of God, the Christ. If your trust (reliance, faith) is in Christ alone, because of what He did through Calvary's cross to pay for your sins, you are saved. Nothing more is required or allowed. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do.

My Response To A Critic Of Eternal Security

Galatians 2:4-5, “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.”

The Apostle Paul said that he refused to put up with false prophets, not even for one hour. Paul shut their microphone down (so to speak), and ran them out of the churches!

I received numerous emails yesterday and today from a religious man who wanted to debate eternal security. I kindly told him that I don't debate, but he persisted to pressure me, thinking that he was going to convince me over to his damnable heresy. Here first is his last email to me, and then following I will post my response. This is an important matter, which I want to lay to rest once and for all. The Bible teaches: ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED!!! If you don't agree with that, then you are not born again and if you don't repent, you will spend eternity burning in Hell, fire and brimstone. It's as simple and frightening as that!

Here is a portion of his foolish email (his grammar is so bad that most of his sentences make no sense at all). I haven't edited anything. Literally, this is exactly what he wrote to me...

I won't quote scripture for I know you know them, but so do I. 

And I have never once read the words "once I am saved I always will be saved" no mater what I do and say to others because if I do anything it is just works trying to save myself.

If we all did not need to do anything then who is not saved by not earning Lord Jesus own death and resurrection Blood Salvation? That he has already gave everyone today even before they were born as sinners and they never could earn it, can they?

Please take no offence, I am not trying to argue, I honestly ask, is "always saved" even Biblical, and if so then why would Jesus own appointed Apostle be lost when he already profess faith in Jesus Christ and who also cast out demons and healed the sick?

Also the 2 born again believers in Acts 5 who Peter drove out their spirit and they fell dead on the ground for their lies they gave against the Holy Spirit.

Also the Holy Spirit has never told me, that I am always saved no matter what I or how I treat others, nor did Apostle Paul never said he was always saved, not that I could read anywhere in scripture. For he said I have finished the race and he looked forward to be saved.

Can we discuss those scripture please, "as it is written" already in the Holy Spirit's Interpretations in Holy scripture with the words God spoke that need no other private reinterpretation from anyone?

Here is my full reply to him...

*****,

Kindly, we don't agree on eternal security. I absolutely believe in, "once saved always saved." No matter what I say, you are set in your beliefs, and so am I.

You are caught between grace and works, because you think YOU have something to do with your eternal salvation. Jesus paid it all and I'm only trusting in CHRIST. The very idea that someone would have to live a certain way to know that they have eternal life, is a fallacy that causes millions of confused people fear and worry every day. No thanks!

Salvation is not a reward for the righteous, it is a gift for the guilty.

Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith.

Turning away from sinful ways would be a work. Faith puts all of the merit where it belongs, on the object of our faith, Jesus and His work.

The true Gospel always points you to CHRIST; a false gospel always points to YOU.

I won't debate this with you. You're not going to convince me to adopt a faith in Christ plus my own efforts type of false salvation. You say salvation is by Christ alone, but then you deny your words by suggesting that the life we live somehow can cost us God's free gift of salvation. A "free gift" (Romans 5:18) means there can be no stipulations or obligations.

You are woefully deceived. Nothing I say is going to convince you, and I refuse to listen to your unbiblical heresy.

In Jesus' precious name,
David

Please keep in mind that this was our fifth exchange of emails. I was being patient with him. I sent him a dozen Gospel sermons and books. I wrote at length explaining the difference between service and sanctification. In fact, here is the previous email that I sent to him, so you can see how sincerely I tried to help the guy see the light of the truth. He had asked me, "Do you think you're always saved no matter what you do or how you treat others as the example of Jesus Christ?" Here is my full reply...

*****,

Yes, once saved always saved, because God's gift of salvation is based upon what Christ alone did to pay for our sins through Calvary's cross.

Having said that, no believer has God's permission to life in sin. Romans 6:1-2, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" God commands all saints to depart from iniquity and walk in holiness, but when we do sin (and we all choose to), God's grace much more abounds so that we can never lose salvation. It is God's salvation, not ours to give. We cannot lose by bad works what we could not earn by good works. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do.

My favorite preacher quote is from Pilgrim's Progress book author, John Bunyan, who said:

“If you do not put a difference between justification wrought by the man Christ without and sanctification wrought by the Spirit of Christ within, you are not able to divide the Word aright; but contrariwise, you corrupt the Word of God, and cast stumbling blocks before the people.” —John Bunyan (1628-1688)

We must keep sanctification (service - Romans 12:1) completely separate from justification (salvation - Galatians 3:26), or else we will corrupt the Gospel and cast stumbling blocks before the people. Many preachers make the mistake of citing the book of Matthew, about picking up one's cross to follow Christ, and they foolishly apply it to salvation. But that is discipleship Jesus is talking about in Matthew. God authored the specific Gospel of John to show humanity how to be saved (John 20:31). We find the word "believe" mentioned 85 times in the book of John, but there is no requirement to follow, confess, repent, turn, forsake, live or anything else; but just to believe. John 6:47, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life."

The Bible warns in Hebrews 12:6-8 that if a man is without chastisement from God for his sins, then he is a bastard and not a genuine adopted son of God. God is not an absent parent! There are two wrong extremes to which a preacher can go. The first is to corrupt the Gospel by adding living a holy life (service) to God's free grace. The second extreme is to just preach that people can be saved without turning from sins, but then that preacher never warns believers of God's judgment upon disobedient children (2nd Corinthians 5:9-11).

Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) addressed this issue of Lordship Salvation. A lady in the church suggested that some of the young people weren't saved because of their misbehaving and bad attitude. Dr. Rice corrects her by teaching her that the problem is not that the teens aren't saved; but rather, they haven't been properly mentored by the spiritual adults in the church. And of course, it might be that indeed they are not saved. But whether someone is saved or not can only be known by a direct testimony from their mouth concerning Jesus Christ. ...

One of my favorite preachers and sermons is by Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold. The sermon is titled, "Why Lordship Salvation Is Wrong."

The Bible is full of horrible saints who hurt others at times. King David stole Uriah's wife, impregnated her, then murdered Uriah to hide the unintended pregnancy. David didn't lose God's gift of salvation, he lost the "joy" of salvation (Psalms 51:12). I believe Joseph's 10 half brothers were saved, even though they conspired to sell him into Egyptian slavery. The Bible is full of the sins of the saints. Thankfully, our God is merciful and is always willing to forgive us and give us unlimited chances, as we see with the woman taken in the act of adultery in John chapter 8.

There is none righteous the Bible says, no not one (Romans 3:10). That includes saved believers. The only thing that makes the holiest saint, any more righteous than the vilest dirty unsaved sinner like John Wayne Gacy, is the precious blood of Jesus (1st Peter 1:18-19). James 2:10 says that if a man commits even one sin, he is guilty of all in the sight of God. In other words, all it takes is just one sin to keep a sinner out of Heaven. The only other place to go is the Lake of Fire forever.

I hope that answers your question. I welcome Bible questions. I just don't like to debate with people.

Have a good evening,

David

Like so many fools before him, he doesn't believe in eternal security. He rejects the idea that a person can be saved and then just live any way they want. Well, he is WRONG! Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9). Either God does the saving, all of it, or else you don't get grace!!!

Eternally Secure Forever In Jesus Christ

John 10:27-29, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”

In the following awesome sermon, Pastor Tom Cucuzza preaches the truth about salvation and the Christian life which we all horribly fail at...

Secure Forever - Part One:
True Salvation And Its Relationship To The Christian Life
~ PART TWO ~
(Pastor Thomas M. Cucuzza)

➙You don't have to repent of your sin to go to Heaven.
➙You can go to Heaven while hanging onto the world.
➙If Christ is not Lord of "all," you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you come to church with a sour and negative position, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you're practicing certain sins in your life, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you've grown cold toward the Lord, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you're not tithing, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you don't endure until the end, you can still go to Heaven.
➙You can practice sin every day and still go to Heaven.

The biblical teachings of eternal life and eternal security are not two separate doctrines, but are one and the same thing. That is, the man who has eternal life already has eternal security. Religious messes us up, but Christianity frees us. If you have trusted in God's only begotten Son as your personal Savior, then you KNOW that you have eternal life.

I Still Sin A Lot And Am Worried I Might Not Be Saved

Romans 10:12-15, “For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”

Many people have been lied to by preachers, misled to think that they are not saved unless their life has changed for the better, but that is not true. One of my favorite quotes is from Pastor M.R. DeHaan (1891-1965)...

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —Pastor M.R. DeHaan, “Hebrews”; Zondervan Publishing House; 1959 (p. 117)

If I were to ask you the question dear reader—Do you know for sure that if you died today, would you go to Heaven?—what would your answer be? If I were asked that same question, my answer would be—I know I am saved because my only hope for forgiveness of sins and eternal life is what Jesus Christ has already done through Calvary's cross to pay for my sins. I realized as a 13 year old boy that I was a guilty sinner in God's sight, and by faith I received what Christ did to pay for my sins on the cross. I am only trusting upon Jesus' death on the cross, His burial and physical resurrection from the dead three days later (1st Corinthians 15:1-4). That is all that I am trusting in to get me to Heaven. If you're answer is different, then you need to get saved friend.

Your behavior, sins and feelings have nothing to do with being saved. You are either solely trusting what Christ did to pay your debt of sin through Calvary's cross, or you're not. Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith. Turning away from sinful ways would be a work. Faith puts all of the merit where it belongs, on the object of our faith, Jesus and His work. The true Gospel always points you to CHRIST; a false gospel always points to YOU.

“Sound doctrine is like a sound ship. There are no holes in it.” —Pastor David Baker

I say “through” because Jesus after He raised up from the dead, still needed to take His literal liquid blood to Heaven to sprinkle upon the Mercy Seat in the presence of God the Father on our behalf (Hebrews 9:12, 22-24; 10:1-4, 12:14). Redemption wasn't “finished” on the cross, for Christ hadn't even died, been buried or resurrected yet. When Christ said “it is finished” (John 19:29-30), He was referring to all the Messianic prophecies concerning Himself up until that point, right after He uttered the words “I thirst” (thus fulfilling Psalms 69:21).

Your behavior, sins and feelings have absolutely nothing to do with being saved. You are either solely trusting what Christ did to pay your debt of sin through Calvary's cross, or you're not. Many people are trusting Christ PLUS something else, and they are not saved. You must put your trust (reliance) upon Jesus only, believing that He is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God (John 20:31). I again recommend that you read Michael P. Bowen's helpful book, "I Never Knew You."

Many people are trusting Christ PLUS something else, and they are not saved. You must put your trust (reliance) upon Jesus, believing that He is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God. I again recommend that you read Michael P. Bowen's helpful book, "I Never Knew You."

I encourage you to listen several times to the Gospel of John, which is God's Gospel tract.

The sins of bitterness, gossip, lust, hate, drunkenness, worry, gluttony, hatred, covetousness and other vices are something that every believers struggle with. Even the best Christians still sin every day and struggle with the sinful flesh. We all have a Skeleton Closet of sins that we don't want other people to know about. That doesn't mean you're not saved. Faith is the only righteous thing that anyone can do to be saved.

You cannot turn away from your sinning and neither can I or anyone else. You might be able to reform and clean up your life, so that you feel more self-righteous and others may think you are a good person, but you still sin and are a sinner. We are saved by trusting in Christ's righteousness, not ours. That is critically important for you to understand. Every Christian should memorize this Bible verse from Philippians 3:9, "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:" You need HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS!!! That is, we are saved by God's imputed righteousness (Romans 4:4-7). By the way, all Bible citations are ONLY from the inspired King James Bible, because all of the modern revisions are corrupted by Satan.

You need to understand that eternal life is a "FREE GIFT" (Romans 5:18) from God. A gift cannot be merited, earned or deserved in any way. Salvation is not a reward, it is a gift for the guilty. You may say that you still sin horribly and worry you're not really saved, but that is exactly who Christ died for, "THE UNGODLY" (Romans 5:6-9). Please don't make the common foolish mistake of looking at your behavior, instead of trusting completely in what Jesus has already done through the cross to pay your massive debt of sin.

The way that you choose to live as a saint is a separate matter of service (Romans 12:1), not salvation (Galatians 3:26). How you choose to live as a born-again believer will determine your rewards and happiness in Heaven, but it has nothing to do with getting saved, which Christ alone did for you, paying for your ticket to Heaven with His precious blood (1st Peter 1:18-19).

I also encourage you to look up these Scripture passages that I have shared with you and memorize many of them. You'll never be able to settle the assurance of God's salvation if you are not familiar with the Word of God. I know I am saved because I can stand upon the promises of God in the Holy Bible. But I have memorized hundreds of Scripture passages in my 43 years as a born again believer since age 13, which help me immensely.

If you still have doubts, pray and ask God to give you the peace you seek, by helping you to understand His great plan of salvation. As long as you associate the new birth with your change of behavior, you will remain confused and worried. One thing has absolutely nothing to do with the other. If I offer you a gift, but then require you to live a better life to keep it or to prove that it actually is yours, it wouldn't and couldn't truly be a "gift." Romans 6:23 and Ephesians 2:8-9 teach us that eternal life is the "gift" of God. You simply TAKE a gift.

What Must I Do To Lose God's Gift Of Salvation?

John 10:27-29, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”

I don't know why anyone would want to LOSE their salvation, but here is a LIST of things you MUST DO in order for you to LOSE God's free gift of salvation. But BEFORE you LOSE SALVATION, you need to make sure YOU'RE SAVED in the first place. It's kind of hard to LOSE something if you don't even have it, right?

IN ORDER TO LOSE GOD'S GIFT OF SALVATION, THIS IS WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO:

1. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unforgive You Of All Your Sins. Ephesians 1:7, "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;"
2. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unredeem You. Romans 3:24, "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:"
3. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Uncircumcize You. Colossians 2:13, "And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;"
4. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unadopt You. Romans 8:15, "For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father."
5. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unaccept You. Ephesians 1:6, "To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved."
6. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unsanctify You. 1st Corinthians 6:11, "And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."
7. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unglorify You. Romans 8:30, "Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified."
8. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Get The Holy Spirit To Unseal You. Ephesians 1:13, "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,"
9. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unjustify You. Romans 8:30, "Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified."
10. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unbless You. Ephesians 1:3, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:"
11. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unbury You. Romans 6:4, "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."
12. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unraise You. Ephesians 2:6, "And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:"
13. You're Going To Have To Get God To Unquicken You. Ephesians 2:1, "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;"
14. You're Going To Have To Get God To Take Christ Out Of You. Colossians 1:27, "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:"
15. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Take You Out Of Christ's Physical Body. Ephesians 5:30, "For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones."
16. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Unbaptize You. 1st Corinthians 12:13, "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."
17. You're Going To Have To Convince God To Uncomplete You. Colossians 2:10,"And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:"

If Salvation Could Be Lost, God Would Have To Undo Numerous Things

John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” 1st John 3:14, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.”

The inspired Holy Bible is very clear that when a person gets saved, they have PASSED FROM DEATH UNTO LIFE. Getting saved is a bridge that cannot be crossed over twice, nor can we return to the former place of being unregenerated as before we received Christ. The new birth can be likened unto the physical birth in numerous ways:

1. Once born, always born (John 3:4).
2. Neither the physical or spiritual birth can be undone (John 6:47).
3. Just as the first birth was beyond our control, so also is the new birth completely of God (John 1:12-13).
4. No one has ever been born physically or spiritually twice. You can be born twice, but only once physically and once spiritually.
5. Just as we had to be born of the flesh to be alive physically, so also must we be born of the Holy Spirit to be alive spiritually.
6. A person can die physically, but cannot undo being born. Likewise, all humans are both spiritually dead, which is why we need to be born-again of God; but once born-again no one can ever be unborn spiritually. It is absolutely impossible!

If salvation could be lost or undone once spiritual rebirth has already occurred in a believer, God would then have to do numerous things the Bible never speaks of nor teaches! Surely the Holy Scripture would clearly illustrate these things, if God's gift of salvation could be forfeited.

Here are some of the things which God would have to undo, and would happen, if you and I could lose God's free gift of salvation (which is by faith alone in the Gospel):

1. God would have to pass us back from life unto death. John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
2. God would have to take back His free gift of eternal life, making Him a liar. Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
3. God would have to remove us spiritually from being seated with Christ in heavenly places. Ephesians 2:6, “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:”
4. God would have to "un-join" us from Christ. Ephesians 4:16, “From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”
5. God would have to "un-wash" us from the blood of Jesus that already washed me (1st Corinthians 6:9-11; Revelation 1:5). 1st John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”
6. God would have to "un-seal" us from the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13-14, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
7. God would have to impute our sins back to us, which He has already imputed to Jesus Christ by faith. Romans 4:5-6, “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,”
8. God would have to restore our sins, no longer removed as far as the east is from the west. Psalms 103:12, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”
9. God would have to remember our sins again, which He had previously forgotten. Isaiah 43:25, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.”
10. God would have to break His own covenant He made with His Son and therefore would make Him a liar. Ezekiel 16:8, “Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness:​​ yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.”
11. God would have to "un-adopt" us as His child. Romans 8:15, “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”
12. God would have to leave and forsake us, even though He promised to never do so. Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
13. God would have to "pluck us" out from His own hand, which He has already promised that nothing could ever do! John 10:28: “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”
14. God would have to take back the free gift of eternal life that He has already given to us by faith. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
15. God would have to “undo” the righteousness that He has already imputed to you and me by faith. Romans 4:6, “Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,”
16. God would have to fail to raise us up on the last day, going back on His solemn promise to do so. John 6:40, “ And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”
17. God would have to fail in completing the “good work” in us, that He has already promised to perform. Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”
18. God would have to ignore the prayers of His Son on our behalf, Who intercedes for us as believers. John 17:9, “I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.”
19. The Holy Spirit would have to stop making intercession for us when we pray. Romans 8:26. “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”
20. Jesus would have to stop being our heavenly High Priest. Hebrews 7:25, “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.”
21. It would mean that salvation is really a reward and not a free gift, since we must do something to keep it. Romans 3:19-20, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”
    
22. It would mean that we are no longer married to Christ. 2nd Corinthians 11:2, “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.”
23. It would mean that no believer can rejoice with 100% confidence that our name is written in Heaven, because we might lose it. Luke 10:20, “Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.”
24. It would cause every believer to live in fear, worry and uncertainty, never knowing if we are truly saved. 1st John 5:13, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
25. The entire Bible would have to be written to retain God's integrity. The Gospel of John teaches us simply to BELIEVE to be saved. If salvation could be lost because of sin, unfaithfulness or any other reason, for the man that BELIEVES, then God lied. John 20:31, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” Titus 3:5, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”